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THE<\/strong> PERFORMER<\/strong> | Mark Ruffalo<\/p>\n THE<\/strong> SHOW<\/strong> | HBO\u2019s Task<\/em><\/p>\n More from TVLine<\/strong><\/p>\n THE<\/strong> EPISODE<\/strong> | \u201cVagrants\u201d\u00a0(Oct. 5, 2025)<\/p>\n THE PERFORMANCE<\/strong> | We\u2019ve seen Mark Ruffalo play a big, green, invulnerable superhero on the big screen before. But in HBO\u2019s spellbinding crime drama, he\u2019s been incredibly vulnerable as rumpled, haunted FBI agent Tom Brandis. He\u2019s nominally the hero of this story, but he\u2019s no superhero. He\u2019s just a man who wants to do his job and take care of his family, and that humble humanity was front and center this week as Tom came face-to-face with the man he\u2019s been pursuing all season long.<\/p>\n Tom followed a lead that led him right to kidnapper Robbie\u2019s doorstep, and he was smart enough to play dumb, with Ruffalo deliberately bumbling around to look as non-threatening as possible to Robbie, stalling him until backup could arrive. (Tom has been out of the field for a while, but his instincts are still right on.) Robbie saw through his ruse, though, and forced Tom to drive him away at gunpoint, and the long drive let the two men get to know each other \u2014\u00a0and learn how much they have in common. Ruffalo tapped into Tom\u2019s spiritual side as a former priest, calmly counseling Robbie and opening up about his family and his faith as a way to connect with his captor. (Tom Pelphrey was fantastic in these scenes, too, his sad eyes spelling out Robbie\u2019s deep regret.) Tom tried to offer Robbie a way out (\u201cyou could still go home\u201d), but the two men ended up in the woods, and with Tom facing certain death, he begged to be able to speak to his kids first, Ruffalo weaving in subtle notes of Tom\u2019s own regret about the things he never got to say. <\/p>\n Tom was spared in the end, and\u00a0a beautiful look of wistful gratitude crossed Ruffalo\u2019s face as Tom walked up to families enjoying the lake, blissfully unaware. The episode wrapped up with a tense standoff between Tom and Robbie, guns pointed at each other \u2014\u00a0and we can honestly say we don\u2019t want either of them to pull the trigger. Ruffalo might not be playing a giant green punching machine this time, but his finely calibrated work as Tom this week packed a serious gut-punch just the same. <\/p>\n Scroll down to see who got Honorable Mention shout-outs this week<\/strong>\u2026<\/p>\nHONORABLE MENTION: Rory Alexander<\/h2>\n